CASE IN CONTROL

New Case CX210E-Smakes light work of heavy tasks in Welsh Quarry. When the time came to replace several ageing excavators at Cware Trefigin Quarry near Cardigan in North Pembrokeshire in south west Wales, the owners had no hesitation in opting for a new heavy duty Case CX210E-S, having enjoyed a successful relationship with the brand for many years.

“THECX210E-SRETAINS ALL THE PERFORMANCE AND OPERATOR COMFORT AS WELL AS QUALITY AND RELIABILITY OF THE STANDARD MODEL”

The family operated sand and gravel quarry was established in 1962 by T Elis Evans, being followed in 1984 by Granville John and his wife Sheila and although they are still active in this highly successful business today, they’ve left most of the heavy work to their three sons -Rhodri, Llŷr and Peredur -who continue to develop and grow the operation.

Trefigin Quarry produces three grades of much sought-after washed sands, gravels and stone to supply the construction industry across the south west of Wales, in addition to meeting the demands of a long list of Builders Merchants, so there is rarely any let-up in the quarry, with reliability and durability of plant and machinery key to the daily success of the operation.

The roots of the business stretch back to the 1950’s when Sheila’s father started out as an agricultural contractor and down through the years as the company evolved Case equipment has played an integral role.

The new 20 tonne CX210E-Sexcavator, which works at the quarry face, joins a number of other machines in the company’s 10 plus strong fleet, including a CX210B model, a CX31B mini digger, a 121 E-Series compact wheel loader and several other 821F loading shovels.

“My father and his father-in-law before him have been using Case equipment for many years and we continue to do so because of the quality and reliability of the brand, together with the exceptional aftercare service of our suppliers, Riverlea Industrial,” says son Rhodri John. “The new CX210E-Sarrived on site in July and we are very happy with its performance. It has replaced a couple of older excavators that have served us well and had clocked up high hours over many years.”

Japanese technology & components

Also there to support the quarry owners when we visited the site was Hayden Bale, Product Specialist/Demonstrator (Northern Europe) at CASE Construction Equipment. “The new CX210E-S, which has been built at our manufacturing facilities in India, features a number of improvements over the older model, but still using Japanese technology and components.

“To add durability and quality to the machine, we’ve beefed up the undercarriage to give it more protection, the boom base has been heavily plated as has the dipper to cope with the tough conditions of the quarry environment,” said Hayden.

“The machine offers more controllability and another big difference is the upgraded engine from the previous D model which was powered by a four cylinder Isuzu engine. We now have our own engine, a six cylinder FPT NEF6

Manufacturer CASE

Model CX210E-S

Weight 22.5 t.

Engine 120.4 kW (161 hp)

Stage V diesel engine, which is also used by many other leading manufacturers. It produces the same horse power as the Isuzu, but at a slightly lower rpm, with a bigger displacement and improved digging power.”

Described as the ‘Essential’ alternative to the regular CX210E, the CX210E-Sretains all the performance and operator comfort as well as quality and reliability of the standard model. It comes factory-fitted with a standard quick coupler circuit and high-flow multifunction auxiliary hydraulics; a low-flow circuit also available for enhanced versatility with all kinds of attachments.

This new E-S model tips the scales around 500kg heavier than the CX210E, due to the heavy-duty build of its frontend equipment, lower structure and undercarriage. It boasts lifting capacity and drawbar pull virtually unchanged and the machine also delivers the very same breakout forces.

A number of work modes are available, including SP (Super Power) mode for maximum productivity (as in D-Series) with the throttle set at maximum power; P (Power) mode which replaces H and A mode in D-Series, with throttle settings from 1 to 10; L (Lifting) mode which is optimised for object handling with power boost permanently activated.

Hayden Bale Product Specialist CASE Construction Equipment

Emyr Griffiths Excavation & Production Supervisor Cware Trefigin Quarries Ltd

There’s also a ground-breaking and increasingly popular Eco mode which reduces fuel consumption through selective control of the engine and pump depending on the movement. It maintains maximum pump torque to deliver high productivity, while minimising fuel consumption during low effort operations.

Quieter working environment

As Rhodri told us, the operator’s cab offers an excellent and quieter working environment, with wide access space and increased foot space, and robust and comfortable steps, as well as a handrail for safe access to the top of the hood. It also boasts a pneumatic and heated operator’s seat with suspended joystick consoles, a 10’’ display – the biggest in the industry -with integrated A/C and five configurable buttons, a Bluetooth radio, and an LED light package for brighter and wider illumination.

Other notable features include standard rear- and right-hand cameras, and a factory fitted travel alarm for greater safety on the jobsite around the machine, while an auto lever lock safety feature immediately stops machine movement when the operator unintentionally unlocks the gate lock, and for the operator’s bits and pieces, there is plenty of storage capacity with a lunch box tray and a cool box, a smartphone tray, and two large drink holders.